{"id":2211,"date":"2022-08-23T12:00:15","date_gmt":"2022-08-23T12:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/wearewestminster\/?p=2211"},"modified":"2022-08-25T11:07:57","modified_gmt":"2022-08-25T11:07:57","slug":"student-finance-tips-for-managing-your-money","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/wearewestminster\/student-finance-tips-for-managing-your-money\/","title":{"rendered":"Student Finance: Tips for Managing your Money"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n

Balancing your finances as a student is sometimes tricky. While you\u2019re busy settling into your course, making friends, and enjoying everything that comes with your new (student) life \u2026it\u2019s hard to think about money matters. But making sure you stay on top of your finances will help you stay financially independent and make you a much more savvy student.<\/strong><\/p>\n


So, here\u2019s some pointers to help you save money and keep on top of your finances\u2026.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t

Secure Your Funding<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

If you\u2019re a home student, make sure you have applied to\u00a0Student Finance England<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>for your student loan and any maintenance loans if you are eligible before you enrol.<\/span><\/p>\n

If you were given your place through Clearing and haven\u2019t had the chance to apply for student finance, you can do so now and still secure finance<\/a><\/span> for the beginning of term. Also if your circumstances have changed since you applied for finance earlier in the year, you can easily make changes to your loan here<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t

Westminster Funding, Assistance and Advice<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Although you may have missed scholarship \u2018season\u2019, we do offer advice on\u00a0other funding options<\/a>\u00a0and some assistance through\u00a0bursaries<\/a> once you become a current student. The Student Advice Team can inform you of any current options available once you start. In fact, they offer one-to-one appointments you can book to discuss a whole host of topics from student funding, tuition fees and visa and immigration.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t

Create a Budget<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Once you have your student loan\/funding it\u2019s a good idea to set a weekly or monthly budget, so you\u2019ll have a clear overview of your necessary expenses such as food and bills vs what\u2019s left over for your lifestyle spends. A good website to look at for this is Save the Student<\/a><\/span>, they have created a great user-friendly tool that you can download to help you create your budget. Another good tool is the Budget Calculator<\/a><\/span>\u00a0by UCAS.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t

Open a Student Bank Account<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

So, now you know how much funding you have, you\u2019ll need somewhere to put it. Most banks offer Student Bank Accounts, these are beneficial because they come with lower interest rates and often guaranteed fee free overdrafts. Plus, incentives for signing up range from \u00a3100 cash back to free Railcards and Tastecards. Be mindful though, you don\u2019t want to be duped by the offer of low value incentives over fee free overdrafts\u2026. if you can get both you\u2019re winning!<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t

Travel Discounts and Lifestyle Savings<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

As a student attending a London based university, you\u2019re probably going to be taking the tube or bus to get into campus and around the city. Once you have\u00a0officially enrolled<\/strong>\u00a0on your course you can apply for:<\/p>\n